You may not have heard about the Baselworld or Basel Fair, the world’s largest watch and jewellery trade show. This year, the show runs March 23 to 30. The trade show is held each year in the Swiss city of Basel, and it attracts top watchmakers from around the world. Think about the CES or MWC, however, the focus is largely on the watch and jewellery market. From Rolex to Tag Heuer to Omega, some of the leading watch makers and fashion houses descend on Basel to unveil their latest luxury timepieces.
This year, in particular, we saw the dominance of American luxury brands at the Baselworld watch and jewellery show. A slew of notable traditional watch brands showcased new smartwatches in Basel. Movado, for example, went ahead with its plans and released a new Android Wear 2.0 smartwatch, the Connect, at the Baselworld 2017 watch show. Fossil Group was not far behind in the race, as it announced 300 hybrid and touchscreen styles across 13 brands. Surprisingly, the South Korean giant Samsung drew everyone’s interest by showcasing a Gear S3 hybrid pocket watch concept.
Though the show continues to go on for a few more days, there’s plenty that’s already been announced and showcased. Here’s a breakdown on some of the most exciting smartwatches revealed, so far.
Movado Connect
Luxury smartwatch houses are getting on the smartwatch bandwagon, and Movado is no different. The Connect is a sleek looking Android Wear 2.0 watch, with an edge-to-edge display. Movado is yet to share many details about the watch, but it says the company will offer 5 different Men’s styles of the watch that include both strap and bracelet options. The watch will launch this fall starting at $495 (or approx Rs. 32,632).
Samsung Gear G3 concept watches
At Baselworld 2017, Samsung has shown off some concept watches and the devices are based on the Gear S3, The three concept watches were designed by well-known watch designer Yvan Arpa. The three concepts include a watch which may look like the Gear S3 at first glance, but is a traditional watch with Swiss-made movement; there’s an updated version of the Gear S3 with premium finishes, and last but not the least, a hybrid pocket watch concept. The latter concept blends the modern with the traditional.
Misfit Vapor
Misfit Vapor features a 1.39-inch AMOLED display, a Snapdragon Wear 2100 processor, a touch-enabled bezel and a 44mm satin-finished stainless steel casing, and comes with a built-in GPS. This is essentially a fitness-focused smartwatch, having an optical heart rate scanner and water resistance up to 50 meters. It’s worth noting that there isn’t NFC on board, which means you won’t be able to use Android Pay. The Vapor will be available in late summer in Jet Black and Rose Gold for $199 (or approx Rs. 13,010).
Fossil Q Venture/Explorist
Both Fossil Q Venture and Explorist promises to be better than the company’s previous Q models. And, they are described as ” the brand’s slimmest, most feature-packed touchscreen smartwatches to date”. Both smartwatches are running Android Wear 2.0, pack bright AMOLED displays, and feature a digital crown for easier navigation and. The watches will go on sale in Fall.
Hugo Boss Touch is a connected smartwatch, running Android Wear 2.0. According to Wearable, the watch appears to be constructed of carbon black IP stainless steel and there will be a range of interchangeable straps. The Touch will offer NFC but no heart rate sensor. The smartwatch will go on sale in August for $395 (or approx Rs. 25,824).
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